Tony winner Jessie Mueller played her final performance in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, March 6. Canadian actress Chilina Kennedy, who made her Broadway debut as Mary Magdalene in the 2012 revival of Jesus Christ Superstar, succeeded her in the role the next day. Here's a look at Mueller's final bow and Kennedy's debut.

Jessie Passes the Torch! Broadway's Beautiful Bids Farewell to Tony Winner, Welcomes a New Leading Lady

Jessie Passes the Torch! Broadway's Beautiful Bids Farewell to Tony Winner, Welcomes a New Leading Lady

Tony winner Jessie Mueller played her final performance in Beautiful March 6. Canadian actress Chilina Kennedy, who made her Broadway debut as Mary Magdalene in the 2012 revival of Jesus Christ Superstar, succeeded her in the role the next day. Here's a look at Mueller's final bow and Kennedy's debut.

"After seeing her excel over the years as the preeminent leading lady of Canada's Stratford Festival, I'm thrilled to welcome Chilina back to Broadway,” director Marc Bruni said in a statement. “She's a unique talent, and I can't wait for the audiences at the Sondheim to experience the warmth, vulnerability, and humility Chilina will bring to the role."

"Long before she was Carole King, chart-topping music legend, she was Carol Klein, Brooklyn girl with passion and chutzpah," according to press notes. "She fought her way into the record business as a teenager and, by the time she reached her twenties, had the husband of her dreams and a flourishing career writing hits for the biggest acts in rock ‘n’ roll. But it wasn’t until her personal life began to crack that she finally managed to find her true voice. Beautiful tells the inspiring true story of King’s remarkable rise to stardom, from being part of a hit songwriting team with her husband Gerry Goffin, to her relationship with fellow writers and best friends Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann, to becoming one of the most successful solo acts in popular music history. Along the way, she made more than beautiful music, she wrote the soundtrack to a generation."